15 Minutes (Infinifilm Edition)

Review by D. Litton for 15 Minutes (Infinifilm Edition)
Rating:
Hollywood has never satirized itself or the media quite so effectively as in “15 Minutes,” a thriller which begins with a whimper and ends with a satisfying bang. Writer/director John Herzfeld’s story of two men on a twisted journey to stardom, and the police and reporters who follow them, is an almost gripping reminder of just how bloated things can get once the media gets involved. Vacationing Europeans Emil (Karel Roden) and Oleg (Oleg Taktarov) have come for a hefty sum of money, but when they arrive at the apartment of Emil’s friend Milos, and discover the money gone, they kill Milos and his wife, all the while videotaping the murder with a stolen camcorder. The one witness to the crime flees, later falling into the hands of homicide detective Eddie Flemming (Robert de Niro), and arson investigator Jordy Warsaw (Edward Burns), who met at the scene of a fire set the make the murder appear as an accident. Since we know the identity of the killers, we know this is not a mystery thriller. Instead, the movie becomes a touch more interesting by introducing the media and all its propaganda tools. Oleg has a fascination for movie-making, and Emil’s growing interest for the way in which Americans easily get away with murder and make money from it send the two of them on a murder rampage that gets the attention they want and the promise of money they desire. Watching the news and tabloid shows only fuels their goals, as does the promise of a hefty sum of money from Top Story anchor Robert Hawkins (Kelsey Grammer), in exchange for their videotapes for his show. A major key to making the issues this movie addresses work is a credible cast, something this film is never without. De Niro is cocky and witty as Eddie Flemming, the ideal inner-city cop, while Burns gives a unique performance as Jordy, who wants nothing more than to learn from Eddie the nuances of cracking a case. Grammer makes Hawkins an easily-contemptible character, while Roden and Taktarov fill their characters with fiendish insanity. In the interest of keeping the rest of the film a surprise, I shall go no further into plot details. The beginning is somewhat slow, almost to the point of causing the audience to lose interest. It takes its share of unexpected turns, some predictable, others you never see coming. The early death of a major character sent me reeling in my chair, while a secondary fire set by the two “visionaries” is predictable in its outcome (you know the second major character will make it at least until the end). But rather than pay too much attention to surprising us, “15 Minutes” is more concerned with giving us a rock-solid portrait of the circus that has become the media, and the evils that control it. Eddie sees his growing fame as a helping hand, but the film turns this fame against him, with chilling results. Hawkins is as despicable as reporters get, selling his soul to the devil for his share of the fame. Even Emil’s lawyer, after his arrest, is more concerned with his share of the movie and book rights than he is about keeping the city safe from a dangerous felon. Perhaps the most effective scene, that which sums up everything that the film is trying to say, comes with the early death of that major character. As the two hold him hostage in his apartment, Emil reveals his master plan, his concoction of portraying himself and Oleg incompetent to stand trial, protecting them from criminal charges so they can go on to sell their story to screenwriters and authors. This particular moment poses the audience the question of what is more twisted: Emil’s insane plans, or the fact that everything in his plan happens everyday in trial across the country. I enjoyed “15 Minutes” because I was able to connect with the issues it addressed, and the way in which it addressed them. The fact of the matter is, the movie is truthful in its portrayal of how the media can blow something way out of proportion, and then everyone wants something out of it. Halfway into the movie, a magazine vendor says, “It pays to be a killer in this country.” Apparently so.

Review by for 15 Minutes (Infinifilm Edition)
Rating:
…a disappointment and major blow to the De Niro “can do no wrong” theory. The man is truly a legend and I still hold him in high regard but my god this film was bad.
It was suppose to reflect what America’s love of violence is like – a condemning look, yet it didn’t achieve it. Scene after scene of pointless violence soon made it hypocritical and the script was appalling.
De Niro just wasn’t up to scratch, he’s slumming it in this film and I resent him for it. I resent him because he is one of the few actors I choose to admire and trust his judgement of films thus forking out money to see them and then being let down by something like 15 Minutes.
I haven’t lost faith though, as I said I still respect him. I just think of Taxi Driver, Goodfellas and Midnight Run and loads of other films and then remember why I like him.
De Niro fans – don’t avoid this film see it by all means. It’s a harsh reminder that he isn’t perfect.

Review by John Nelson for Bottom – Not Another Half-Arsed DVD Set
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Listen, I’m not an elitest snob but I won’t ignore what I know myself. Tv has gotten pretty lame lately and is showing little sign of getting better. Sitcoms that are touted by everybody as being funny and aren’t, dramas that hype the drama and don’t deliver. Good shows like Farscape and The Job which get canned while demons on NBC and CBS go untamed. Thats what I like about BOTTOM. It says that you’ll laugh and you will, it doesn’t shout it out loud either. There are no major plots just silly events which turn into stories on their own. It has a cult following and we can pray for new episodes or at least the live performances to come to disc as well.BOTTOM comes from the minds primarily behind THE YOUNG ONES (another bastion of great watching) but on a slightly more mature and grown up level. If THE YOUNG ONES was a “family” show with Vyvian as son, Neil as mother, Mike as dad, Rick as daughter, then BOTTOM is a husband and wife style show with two chums (and no they aren’t gay but at times Richie seems boderline), Sexually frustrated and annoying Richie (the wife) and stagering jobless drunkard Eddie (husband) share an apartment in England. They don’t have much money, they don’t have many friends, they almost never get the girl and both are almost ingratiatingly stupid. All they have is each other, and thats why one would cheat the other out of anything even to merely creep ahead in life, even if it means giving up a greater fortune. Don’t worry YOUNG ONES fans, all of the slapstick violence and verbal abuse came over intact without the weird surrealism and side storys.The entire series is here on a three disc set. SMELLS has the boys getting ahold of Pheramone spray and then testing it out on girls at the local bar, too bad they don’t know that they’re already “taken”. GAS, one of the funnier epsiodes has the gas man coming to read the meter in the apt. Little does he know that they are stealing gas from their neighbor. Can they get stop the meter man, without killiing him anyway? CONTEST is my favorite episode and cements the “husband/wife” relationship of the show with Eddie blowing whats left of the money on a vintage porn magazine and then expecting to watch a beauty pagent on TV all the while Richie slaved away making a terrible meal complete with green bacon. APOCALYPSE has Eddie and Richard hitting the fair and finding out from a gypsy that Richie has 3 days to live, sure enough he gets to meet the reaper. In BOTTOM’S UP, Richie and Eddie’s landlord pays them to watch over his store while he goes to funeral, they decide to sit on the roof and watch sports instead. ACCIDENT has Richie breaking his leg on his birthday and condsiders killing himself when his nonexistant friends don’t show up. The scene where picks his teeth after drinking is priceless (and gross). DIGGER has the duo hitting a dating sevice. After Richie lies about being rich a countess shows up hoping to merry only for his money. PARADE isn’t so much funny as it is the best story in the series. After scoring some cash, the two go to the bar where the local bookie, whos hammered spills the beans about a hot tip. to raise cash for the bet, they steal a war veteran’s fake leg and sell it at the pawn shop. CULTURE shows us what the boys get up to when the TV’s been repossessed, with nothing else to do, they play chess. Too bad Richie is too hyper and excited to remember he doesn’t know how to play chess. BURGLARY has the guys catching a burglar in their house and find his stolen loot. Only one thing stand in the way of them going to Barbados, what to do with the burglar. Well….they could kill him. The Christmas episode HOLY has gifts passed around, fingers cut off and possbily the second coming with Richie in the role of Mary. After all he is a virgin. BOTTOM’S OUT has the two staking out some land for a camping expidition not 50 feet from the bus stop. Along with GAS, one of the funniest episodes. HOLE has Eddie and Richie debating life and stuff after they are trapped on a ferris wheel. Oh well they can get off in the morning, hopefully before the wheel is demolished… TERROR has Richie and Eddie trying to get money at Halloween with a cattle prod. When the party starts, Richie attempts to contact Satan. (By the way this episode aired years before South Park did, you’ll know what I mean when you see it) BREAK concerns Eddie and Richies attempts to get in shape so they can score some girls on an upcoming vacation, they have to survive working out and each other first. DOUGH is definetly the most plot oriented episode with Eddie counterfitting money and end up trying to win a quiz match so that the local counterfitter doensn’t crush their skulls. FINGER has the pair stealing honeymoon tickets from a local cricket champ and end up posing as a couple with Eddie making a truly ugly woman. Hattrick for this episode, Eddie gets booted in the crotch 3 times. CARNIVAL is the finale with Richie stealing a TV camera during a riot and attempting a “funniest home video accident”. The tape in the camera shows something quite different and then the two attempt blackmail of the prime minister.One of my new favorite shows and one that should live on longer then others. If you were a fan of THE YOUNG ONES, it definitly deserves a watch.

Review by melanie simner for Bottom – Not Another Half-Arsed DVD Set
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Having moved to the USA 12 months ago I found that i wanted some of the comedy that I had taken for granted back home. I have tried everywhere to get Bottom on DVD and had bought a multi-region player so that next time I was in the UK I could bring some back. It is great news to see this anarchic comedy being put out in a generous 3 disc set. If you like your humour outragious and littered with a fair amount of painful slapstick, then this is definitely for you.Buy with total confidence if you like the mad humour of Cleese, etc. …..and of course it does have it’s fair amount of toilet humour…hence the title!…….Also, look out for the release of a 4 disc set of the king of UK sitcoms….Only fools and horses, one of the funniest UK sitcoms ever. you may take a while to understand the lingo….but you will love it all the same…..or you must be a “24 carrot plonker!”

Review by D. Colley for Bottom – Not Another Half-Arsed DVD Set
Rating:
BOTTOM is probably one of the most underrated comedies ever. Everytime British TV do a 100 greatest comedies, sketches, etc, it never gets a look in. Which is a shame because it is infinitely more funnier tham most of the crud that passes for comedy these days. There is a lot more to this than just slapstick, toilet humour and gratuitous violence (which make it funny anyway). The script is witty, and fresh enough to appeal to others as well.

For example (though not a very good example):

When Richie and Eddie go camping on Wimbledon Common and run out of food (within 5 minutes of getting there) Richie’s morbid mind turns to cannabilism:

Rich: “What’s that film were they all eat each other?”

Eddie: “Deep Throat.”

The humour can be surprisingly subtle in places and the writing is superb, especially when Richie and Eddie are stuck in the flat

with nothing to do. Not much happens but Richie’s inevitable wish to annoy the hell out of Eddie is a joy to watch.

Even though the humour can be crude for some, there is an innocence in their otherwise rotten lifes (Richie’s virgin teenage-like pangs: “Why won’t anyone have it off with me?”)

The innocence, and cartoonish violence, reminds me of Laurel and Hardy (both get on each other’s nerves, and both seem to physical damage each other, buy design or accident, but, on the other hand, both cannot seem to survive without each other).

Series three is the weakest of the three series. It relies more on shouting and slapstick than great writing (which is balanced perfectly in the first two series). Though, the episode where Rich and Eddies are stuck on top of a ferris wheel is an exception. Even so, series three is still brilliant.

My favourite episodes are: Richie’s birthday party where he breaks both his legs and the Christmas special where Richie cuts his finger off and Eddie staples it back on – Merry Christmas!